Overview

The Importance of Being Earnest (Turtleback School & Library Binding Edition) by Oscar Wilde

About the Author

Oscar Wilde was born in Dublin in 1854. He graduated from Oxford University in 1878 with a reputation as a brilliant scholar and quickly dazzled London society with his wit and his flamboyant dress. His first literary successes came in the 1880s with his lecture tour of America and the publication of his fairy tales. These were followed by five highly polished plays and The Picture of Dorian Gray, all completed during the first half of the 1890s. After losing a slander suit over accusations of his homosexual behavior, Wilde was prosecuted and spent two years in prison. Following his release in 1897, estranged from his wife and children, Wilde moved to Paris, where he died in 1900.

About the Author

Born in Ireland in 1856, Oscar Wilde was a noted essayist, playwright, fairy tale writer and poet, as well as an early leader of the Aesthetic Movement. His plays include: An Ideal Husband, Salome, A Woman of No Importance, and Lady Windermere's Fan. Among his best known stories are The Picture of Dorian Gray and The Canterville Ghost.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

The Importance of Being Earnest 4.2 out of 5based on
0 ratings.
41 reviews.

IanThomas

More than 1 year ago

I am very proud to say I read this play and to an extent, enjoyed it. I first heard of Oscar Wilde from another book and when I found this book by him as a possible choice for some required reading, I was ecstatic. Besides the name, Oscar Wilde was unknown to me. I had no knowledge of prior work, history, or even that he wrote plays, not novels. I was truly going out on a lim with this book. I was and was not disappointed in this book.
Eighteenth century literature is very strange to me, especially plays. The way of talking and the humor, I find hard to connect to. The characters are far to formal to the extent of being unrealistic. I do not know if that is just my culture and up bring of unbelievable informality or an overly cocky author trying to establish he position as a highly educated person. All conversation in this play seamed stiff and planned out. This for me was especially apparent when it should have been informal conversation if not very informal. Conversations between the to main characters (Algernon and Jack who are friends) just did not flow for me. Their characters did not flourish. Throughout this play I found that one specific characteristic was present in a characters and all to often became the hole character. I felt that they were all one dimensional, "paper" characters. That may have been what Wilde was after in this "Trivial Comedy for Serious People" but it was lost on me.
Although I did not enjoy the characters, I did find the story line and plot very interesting and original. I love how this play and the characters put so much emphasis on a name, a single word. I find this fascinating and that main reason I enjoyed this play. I think Oscar Wilde, with this play, captured the essence of the human love for words, spoken and written. Not only do we feel great emotion with words, we put so much importance in them. There are connotations, alternate meaning and, "forbidden" words. These have so much meaning to us. Meaning that we have put into them. The two main female characters do this with a name, Earnest. They have their minds made up that they will only marry a man with the name of Earnest. This is the plot of the story and for how simple it is, I find it very elegant and lovely.
With my likes and dislikes about this play, I must come to the parts I hate, about this book. Ending are meant to wrap it up. They make or break a book. There is no perfect ending but there are many bad endings. The Importance of Being Earnest has one of the worst I know. I hate to bad mouth a renowned piece of literature but for this, I truly feel I must. The fraise "Fairy Tail Ending" dose not cover this "perfect" of an ending. I would not mind if it ended happily but in the way it does, it makes me sick. To fully understand how poor the ending is you must read the book.
I know I have given a rather poor review for this book, but I must reinvigorate I did enjoy it. The Importance of Being Earnest is a fine read and I feel should be read. Some parts must be fought though but the final destination is good.

Guest

More than 1 year ago

I Consider it a Very pleasant chance to study Oscar Wilde's The importance of Bieng Earnest.It Is hard for any playwright or novelist or whatever person to make people laugh through words.However this difficulty was really dissolved,and it was neither difficult nor impossible for Oscar Wilde To attract people's attention and to make them laugh through his works.I Consider , myself, The importance of being Earnest one of the most remarkable works of satire and criticism not only in the Victorian age,but also nowadays,since it discloses many aristocratic behaviors that seems to be very weird and funny at the same time.the several interpretations of this play may be considered as an enough reason for explaining the wit and cleverness of Oscar Wilde.Which,in fact, was translated into words and Acts.Through studying this play,it was clear for me and for my colleagues that Wilde's most important concern is to criticize and assail the Victorian principles and moralites.Wilde Chose some examples of Upper Class poeple to play the role of trivializing a whole culture and philosohpy of life.Characters such as Algernon and Jack are an essential example to reveal Wilde's criticism.They are the effiminite men,who,in the one hand, make pleasure and food as serious and vital as any other mportant and grave issue.on the other hand, they trivialize what is used to be common and widely respecatble in the social view like marriage and love and so on.Oscar Wilde makes his characters play the role of corrupting maxims and saying.Marriage, for instance, has a very common saying about it :'Two is a company three is a crowd', However in the play, this maxim is modified and subverted.it besomes :'in married life, three is a company, and two is none'.the third element in marriage life is business.By mentioning business,one may remark that people in the Victorian age worship money and business more than any other thing.since money provide a full and complete pleasure and comfortable life of them.The feminine Characters in the play, such as Cecily and Gwendolen,though they are well educated but this over intellectualism is standing side by side to their silliness and tiviality.It is really amazing to judge Someone through his name-as what these girls do in fact-.They fall in love with Algernon and Jack not because of their characters,but because of the 'vibrations' produced by their 'unreal' name,Ernest.This trivial motive that stand behind love, is considered on the one hand as a corruption of the moral notion' Love'.it shows love as a trivial emotion that must be criticized.and on the other hand,the silliness of these girls concerning their ' romantic' love,shows how trivial a dandy can be. Lady Bracknell is another important character in the play.She is given some of the wittiest statements of Oscar Wilde himself.She is a great example of the domineering and snobbishing woman,who wants to make her daughter manipulative like her.She wants Gwendolen to be married to a very rich and known man.Her list of 'eligible men' gives us a clear image about her character.She makes the notion of love appear as a deal of business and as a contract that must be beneficial.Her disapproval for the match between her daughter Gwendolen and Jack,is not of his character as an ignorant and a man who smokes,but in the contrary, she disagree with the match because of Jack's unconventional origin.He explaines for L.Bracknell that he was found in a railway station,and that is enough for her to forbid the marriage.This image shows how important the good breed of a person is,because if he is of a good breed and a decent origin so he is automatically acceptable.Otherwise he would be rejected and mocked by people,as what L.Bracknell does in fact with Jack.

Guest

More than 1 year ago

After reading The Importance of Being Earnest in my modern novel class, I became an Oscar Wilde fan. You have to love his wit, dialogue, and clever use of language. A very funny, entertaining, and light play.

Anonymous

More than 1 year ago

I have read all of wilde's plays and loved them all except for this one. I do not understand how this play became his most famous. All ofhis othe plays have beautiful endings were love or forgiveness triumph. They are witty and funny but tell deep truths about the human condition. This play on the other hand is superficial and has little meaning. The moral being somethin like if you lie and fake your way through life it turns out great. The love in this book is based on first impressions and names. Th dialogue tries to be so witty it is hard to suspend disbelief. The characters have no developement or depth. Not to mention the ending is really aweful. That said his other 5 plays are beautiful work of art and I would recommend any of them.

Anonymous

More than 1 year ago

I'm always skeptical of books I'm required to read for school, but this one was truly great. I absolutely love this story and read the entire play in one sitting.

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More than 1 year ago

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Anonymous

More than 1 year ago

This book is probably more appropriate for teens and adults. It is written in a play format. It isn't thought provoking, but it is rather amusing. Essentially, the basic plot are the complications that arise when people insist on developing alter egos. In a way, as far as discussion, you could interest people in discussing the difficulties other well-known characters or people have had that have double identities (for instance, Superman/Clark Kent). Jack Worthing wishes to marry Lady Fairfax. The problem is, her mother doesn't approve of his orphaned background--he was found in a lady's handbag at the train station. Meanwhile, he is planning to kill off his alter ego Ernest--who is young ward is interested in. Complications arise when his friend Algernon decides to impersonate Ernest. The plot held together well and had very nice twists. The mystery of Jack's origins is solved. At first, I had difficulty in understanding whether the banter between people was supposed to be considered funny or insulting...but once I realized they were trying to be witty, I was able to enjoy it more.

Anonymous

More than 1 year ago

Very well writen; exteremley good for alll ages.

The_Softshell_Crab

More than 1 year ago

A classic and an excellent read. Only a few very minor formatting issues kept this from getting five stars. A must read.

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More than 1 year ago

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More than 1 year ago

REL

More than 1 year ago

'The Importance of Being Earnest' is perhaps the most magnificent theatrical display of identity crisis since Shakespeare's 'Twelfth Night' and just as humorous. In this play, two friends, Mr. Jack Worthing and Mr. Algernon Moncrieff who find themselves to be similarly engaged in the art of creating a pretend character who frequently needs their attention and calls them from home. Jack Worthing creates a fictitious brother, "Ernest" as an explanation to his young ward Cecily and members of his household for his frequent visits to the city. In turn, Algernon invents a friend, Mr. Bunbury, who requires his attentions in the countryside. While in the city, Jack assumes the identity of Ernest and his friend Algernon suspects that Ernest is not truly who he seems to be. Jack confesses to his lie and reveals that he has a beautiful young ward named Cecily in the countryside, prompting Algernon to visit Jack's house. Meanwhile, Jack proposes to Algernon's cousin, Gwendolyn Fairfax and by the time he arrives in his country home, he finds Algernon posing as Jack's made-up brother "Ernest" and trying to win Cecily's affections. When Gwendolyn goes to Jack's country house to see the man she knows as Ernest, confusion and hilarity ensue as the two men pretending to be Ernest learn the importance of being earnest.
This play is a must-read for fans of theater, comedy, or just literature in general. Clever, witty, and sophisticated without being meretricious, this is amusing to say the least and exemplary of good writing. Full of brio, this play is complex without being a soap opera and has themes as entertaining and classier than any contemporary reality TV show has to offer. It is short enough to be a great beach read for people desiring a more substantial yet light read.